Crated cabinet



Oct. 30, 1956 A. wHlTN ET AL CRATED CABINET '3 Sheets-Sheet l FiledMarch 25, 1954 Oct 30, 1956 A. wHrroN ET AL 2,768,738

CRATED CABINET Oct- 30, 1956 A. wHlToN ET AL CRATED CABINET 3Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 23, 1954 A, a E A 5.

n@ iw United States Patent O CRATED CABINET Arthur L. Wllitou, Evanston,and Ralph J. Byers, Des Plaines, lll., assiguors to Chicago Mill andLumber Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware ApplicationMarch 23, 1954, Serial No. 418,071

1 Claim. (Cl. 20G-46) This invention relates to a shipping container orthe like which provides maximum stacking and crushing strength andminimum weight while also affording complete protection against ingr'essof dirt. Specically, this invention relates to a crate for refrigeratorsor the like bulky cabinet structures which is composed of wood andcorrugated paper board with the wooden components arranged to providemaximum stacking strength and tending to place the paper boardcomponents under tension when loaded to thereby provide maximum strengthwith a minimum amount of material.

The invention will hereinafter be specifically described as embodied ina crate for refrigerators but it should be understood that the crate ofthis invention is not limited to usage for packaging any particular typeof goods Since the principles of this invention are generally applicableto containers or shipping packages for any use.

Heretofore known wood reinforced corrugated board shipping crates havehad the wood reinforcing cleats or slats on the outside of the crate. Ithas been observed that stresses incurred in the stacking of such cratestend to place the corrugated board under compression loads. Sincecorrugated paper board has very little resistance to compression, theboard in such crates has acted merely as a dust seal or cover. Anyattempts to utilize some of the strength of the paper board forenhancing the strength of the crate, has required the use of paddingbetween the packaged goods and the board or has permitted the directseating of the board on the packaged goods. This practice, of course,results in th'e loading of the contents of the crate when the crate isloaded thereby enhancing the chances of damaging the packaged goods orat least subjecting it to undesired stresses which may tend to causeWarpage.

The present invention now provides a cleated corrugated board cratewhich places the corrugated board under tension when the crate is loadedand which does not r'equire packing or other inserts to maintain thecrate components in spaced relation from the packaged goods. Y

In the specific preferred embodiment of the invention, a refrigerator tobe packaged has its bottom bolted -to a skid and its back bolted to atransverse crate bar. The skid is composed of two parallel wooden slatsresting on a single sheet of corrugated board to form a closed bottomfor the crate. The corrugated board, in turn, rests on a pair of spacedexternal slats in right angle relation to the internal slats and securedthereto to form a rectangular frame. The internal slats have notchedcorners and the corrugated board has integral folding aps extending fromthe four sides thereof. The back wall of the refrigerator has the cratebar bolted transversely thereacross adjacent the top of the refrigeratorand a pair vof inclined wooden spacer bars are dispos'ed between thecrate bar and this back wall so as to hold the crate bar in rearwardlyspaced relation from the refrigerator. A four-sided wrap-'aroundwood-cleated corrugated board abutting member has four vertical orupright wooden cleats secured to the inside face thereof at thecorner-forming portions of the body. The bottoms of these upright cleatsfit in the notches of the Slat boards. The cleats adjacent the rearcorners of the body member are notched near their top ends to receivethe ends of the crate boards. Front and rear transverse or horizontalcleats are lalso provided to it in notches at the central points of theupright cleats to rigidify the front and rear walls of the body. Thespacer boards are notched to engage and rigidity the rear corner uprightcleats. Folding flaps are provided 'at the top and bottom ends of thebody member beyond the cleats and a seam-forming flap is provided on oneend edge of the body to overlap the other end edge. A top assemblycomposed of a plywood or wood veneer Vpanel with cleats on the innerface thereof forming a rectangular frame and providing notches toreceive the upper ends of the vertical or upright cleats, is coveredwith a single sheet of corrugated board having folding aps extendingbeyond the panel from the four sides thereof. The flaps of the body andthe top and bottom assembly interlock to form dust-tight seals and theresulting interlocked seams are held tightly against the body member bywraparound metal straps.

From the above descriptions, it should be understood that the crate ofthe preferred embodiment of this invention only contacts the back of therefrigerator through the two spacer boards. The entire remainingcomponents of the crate are spaced from the refrigerator and are sorigidied that they will not be deflected into contact with therefrigerator unless, of course, the corrugated board is punctured. Thecleats are all disposed inside of the corrugated board body and when thecrate is loaded as in stacking, the wood components form a rigidskeleton reinforced by the paper board and without subjecting therefrigerator to any loads. The crate is dust-proof and moisture-proofsince the strap-held seams between the body and the top and bottomassemblies are tight. The vertical cleats have their top and bottom endsbottomed on wood and yet any external shocks to these cleats must comethrough the shock-absorbing corrugated board.

The wooden plywood or veneer top panels for the cover or top assembly,cooperate with the rectangular wooden bottom skid assemblies to providea virtual platform which is substantially puncture-proof and will carryloads which yare misaligned from the upright cleats.

It is then an object of this invention to provide a shipping containerwhich cannot have rubbing contact with the packaged goods and whichaffords maximum strength per unit weight.

A further object of this invention is to provide a shipping cratecomposed of wood cleated corrugated board wherein the wood cleats aredisposed inside of the crate and when loaded will place the corrugatedboard under tension.

Another object of this invention is to eliminate heretofore requiredpadding and corrugated board reinforcement members in a crate.

A still further object of the invention is to provide sealing flaps onthe top and bottom assemblies of the crate to tie all four sides of th'eupright body member of the crate together to cause the same to work inunison.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a wood veneer ormulti-ply wood panel assembly for the top of a corrugated paper boardcrate to enhance the puncture resistance of the assembly and form aplatform type supporting surface.

Another object of the invention is to provide corner cleats supporting aplywood top for a Wood cleated corrugated paper board crate to eliminatepossible puncture of the paper board from loads carried by the cleats.

A further object of the invention is to provide a plywood top forcleated corrugated board crates which will resist distortion andcollapse.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cleatcd corrugatedboard crate with front and rear horizontal cleats to resist thrust loadsencountered in trucking on two-Wheel hand carts or the like deviceswhich incline the crates.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a cleatedcorrugated board crate wherein vertical cleats are backed by woodenskids and cannot break through the corrugated bottom of the crate.

A further object is to provide a cleated corrugated board crate whichprovides the goods packaged therein with a dust-tight seal and whichrelieves all stresses from the corrugated board during normal loadsimposed on the crate while utilizing the tensile strength of thecorrugated board to assist the cleats in supporting abnormal loadswithout transmitting any of the load to the goods themselves.

Other and further objects of the invention will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art from the following detailed description of theattached sheets of drawings which, by way of a preferred example only,illustrate one embodiment of the invention and a slightly changedmodification of this embodiment.

On the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective View of the crate of this invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View taken along the lineII-II of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the wrap-around body portion forming the sidewalls of the crate.

Figure 4 is a sectional view along the line IV-lV of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional view along the line V-V of Figure l.

Figure 6 is a top plan view of the bottom or platform portion of thecrate.

Figure 7 is a bottom or inside plan view of the cover or top portion ofthe crate.

Figure 8 is a transverse sectional view, with parts in top plan, takenalong the line VlII-VII of Figure 4.

Figure 9 is a view similar to Figure 7 but illustrating a modiedarrangement for the cleats on the inner face of the top assembly.

As shown on the drawings:

The crate 10 of Figure 1 includes a substantially square tubular body11, a bottom assembly 12 and a top assembly or cover 13. A metal strap14 secures the bolted joint between the bottom 12 and the body 11 whilea second metal strap 15 is provided around the joint between the cover13 and the top of the body 11. If desired, the at straps 14 and 15 maybe replaced with conventional wire binding strands. Any strong strandmaterial is useful.

As shown in Figure 3, the body 11 is composed of a single flatrectangular sheet 16 of corrugated paper board of the typeconventionally used for shipping containers. The sheet 16 has verticalscore or fold lines 17 at spaced parallel intervals to provide a sidewall 18, a front wall 19, a second side Wall 20, a rear wall 21, and anend ap 22. The top and bottom edges of the sheet are slotted at 23 atthe ends of the vertical score lines 17 to provide folding flaps 24 atthe top and bottom ends of each of the wall portions 18, 19, and 21.Spaced parallel double score lines 25 extend across the inner ends ofthe flaps to provide a flap portion 24a therebetween which will affordan end wall when the flap is folded, thereby accommodating an insertedflap.

Wide wooden cleats 26 are secured to the inner faces of the sideportions 18 and 20 of the sheet 16 with the cleat 26 on the side 18being adjacent the free edge of this side while the cleat 26 on the side20 is adjacent the fold line 17 between the side 20 and the back 21.These same sides 1S and 2) also have narrower wooden cleats 27 securedto the inner faces thereof adjacent the fold lines joining them with thefront 19. Suitable fasteners 2S, such as nails, staples, stitching,adhesive bonds, or the like, or any combination of such fasteners unitethe cleats to the corrugated Sheet 16. The term fastener as used hereinis therefore intended to cover such devices and bonds. The verticalcleats 26 and 27 have flat ends terminating slightly inward from theinner fold lines 25.

The Wide cleats 26 have top notches 26a in the edges thereof which faceaway from the side walls on which they are mounted near the top of thecleats and notches 26h in these same edges or side faces at the midpointof the cleats. The cleats 27 do not have the top notches but havenotches 27!) level with the notches 2617.

Wooden horizontal or transverse cleats 29 are secured to the inner facesof the front 19 and back 21 in alignment with the middle notches of thevertical cleats and have tongues 29a on the ends thereof adapted to fitinto the adjacent notches with shoulders 29b at the inner ends of thetongues forming abutment surfaces for engaging the adjacent slats whenthe sheet 16 is folded into its tubular form. Fasteners such as 30, orglue bonds, or both, can be used to unite the cleats 29 to the innerfaces of the front and back 19 and 21. It will be noted that in the llatposition of the sheet 16 the transverse or horizontal cleats 29 arespaced from the vertical cleats and terminate inwardly from the adjacentfolds, or score lines, 17.

As shown in Figure 6, the bottom assembly 12 of the crate 10 is composedof a pair of spaced parallel bottom wooden skids 31, a single sheet 32of corrugated board disposed over the skids 31 and a pair of spacedparallel Wooden slats 33 in right angular relation to the skids 31 anddisposed over the corrugated board 32 and the skids. Fasteners 34, suchas nails, staples, or the like, unite the skids 31 and slats 33 whileclamping the corrugated board 32 therebetween. This forms a rectangularwooden frame having the skids 31 on the outer face of the corrugatedsheet 32 and the slats 33 on the inner face of the sheet.

The sheet 32 projects beyond the slats and skids and has the corners ofthe projecting margin cut away to form aps 35. A score line or foldingline 36 is provided to separate the flaps from the main body portion ofthe board and double score lines 37 are provided outwardly from thelines 36 in parallel relation therewith to provide therebetween anend-forming portion 35a for each flap when the flap is folded on itself.

The bottom lassembly 12 is very rigid even though its central portion iscomposed of only a single thickness of corrugated board.

The slats 33 have deep notches 33a extending inwardly from adjacent endsthereof and shallower notches 33h extending inwardly from the oppositeends thereof. The notches 33a and 33b are formed in the outer sides ofthe slats with the wide notches 33a sized for receiving the wide cleats26 of the body assembly 60 and with the narrow notches 33b sized forreceiving the narrower cleats 27.

The cover assembly 13 is composed of an outer sheet 40 of corrugatedpaper board, an inner plywood panel 41, and four wooden slats 42, 43,44, and 45 on the inner face of the plywood panel 41 arranged inrectangular position in spaced parallel relation just inwardly of theperiphery of the plywood panels. The side slats 43 and 45 are disposedpartially between the rear slat 42 and the front slat 44 and projectpartially beyond the ends of these slats to provide notched recesses.The slat 42 is wider than the other slats so that the notches orrecesses 42a at the ends thereof are deeper than the notches or recesses44a at the ends of the front slat 44.

These slats 42, 43, 44 and 45 are united to the plywood panel 41 and tothe corrugated board cover 40 by arcanes means of fasteners, staples orthe like ,46. f desired, glue bonds can be used to` unite the slats,plywood-and papereover. t

As in the case of the paper cover 32, the top cover 40 projectsbeyondthe slats and beyond the plywood panel 41 and has the corners oftheprojecting portion cut out to form folding aps 47. Score lines 48 areprovided in the flaps in spaced parallelA relationadjacent the peripheryof the plywood 41 and double score lines 49 are provided inthe apsoutwardly from the score'lines 48 to form an end edge portion 47atherebetween and to accommodate the folding of the flaps uponthemselves.

As is shown n Figures` 4 5 and 8, the crate 10 pack- ,ages arefrigerator 50vwith a ilat bottom 51, a vertical back wall 52,Y acontouredl top 53, a substantially iiat side l54, and an ope-nV front,closed' by a rounded door 55. The flat bottom has bolt receivingapertures, and mounting bolts 56 iirrnly unite the bottom 51 to the topsof the wooden slats 33 of the bottom crate assembly 12.

As shown in Figure 8, the rear wall 52 of the refrigerator 50 has nuts,such as the nut 57, welded thereon near the top wall 53. These nutsreceive bolts 58 therein. The bolts extend through a pair of wood spacerbars 59 and through a horizontal wood crate bar 6 as shown in Figures 4,and 8. The spacer bars 59 have their inner side edges clamped againstthe rear 52 of the refrigerator and their outer side edges abutted bythe crate bar 60.

The outer lower end of the spacer bars 59 is notched at 59a to receivethe wide-vertical cleats 26 as will be more fully described hereinafter.

When the refrigerator 50 is bolted on the bottom assembly 12 and whenthe crate bar 60 and spacer bars 59 are bolted to the rear wall of therefrigerator, the tubular body 11 is then adapted to be wrapped aroundthe refrigerator and to have its flap 22 stitched on the outside spaceof the side wall 18 by means of staples, wire stitching, or the like 61,as shown in Figure 1. Alternatively, the body 11 can first be foldedinto tubular form and then dropped around the refrigerator 50. When thebody is folded on its score lines 17, the notches 26a in the wide cleats26 will receive tongues 60a on the ends of the crate bars 60, as shownin Figure 5. These tongues afford abutment shoulders 60b for the opposedfaces of the cleats 27. The tongues 29a of the horizontal cleats 29 willalso tit in the notches 26b and 27b of the adjacent cleats, and thespacer bar lnotches 59a will receive the wide cleats 26 at the rear ofthe refrigerator. The bottoms of all of the vertical cleats 26 and 27will tit into the notches 33a and 33b, respectively, of the bottomassembly with the wide cleats 26 fitting in the wide notches 33a and thenarrow cleats 27 fitting in the narrow notches 33b at the front of therefrigerator. The flaps 24 at the bottom of the body 11 will beoutturned and mated on top of the double aps 35 of the bottom assemblyas shown in Figure 4. The free ends of the double flaps 35 will then beinserted between the flaps 24 and the main body to form an interlockedseam or joint which will be held in locked position by the bottom strap14.

The cover or top assembly 13 is then deposited on top of the tubularbody 11 with the flaps 47 thereof overlying the outturned flap 24 at thetop of the body. The wide cleats 26 at the rear of the crate will fit inthe notches 42a provided at the ends of the wide slats 42 while thenarrow cleats 26 at the front of the crate will fit in the notches 44aat `the ends of the front slats 44. The double tlaps 47 of the cover arethereupon folded around the flaps 24 at the top of the body and the topstrap 15 will hold the assembly in tight seamed relation as shown inFigure 2. As therein shown, the double seam has the end walls 24a and47a thereof provided by the portion between the double score lines.

The bottom ends of all of the vertical cleats 26 and 27 rest on thecorrugated boards 32 that are positioned in the notches 33a and 33h ofthe bottom assembly, but the skids 31 underlie the corrugated paper atthese areas -so that the thrust loads will be imparted directly throughthe cushioning paper to the wooden skids.

The top ends of the vertical cleats 26 and 27 directly abut the innerface of the veneer panel 41 positioned in the notches 42a and 44a.Thrust forces are thus irnparted to the substantial platform-likeassembly but external portions must be applied through the corrugatedpaper cover before reaching the inner frame structure.

The abutment aiforded by the tongues and the notches -for the cleats andslats provide thrust resisting stops which reinforce the cleats tocreate a framework which is extremely rigid and capable of supportinggreat loads. At the same time, however, the refrigerator 50 is spacedfrom both the framework and the surrounding cover afforded by thecorrugated paper tube and the top and bottom end covers. No damage ofthe refrigerator body due to rubbing action between the crate and bodycan occur. The refrigerator is fixedly cradled inside of the crate andyet has contact only with the portions of the crate adjacent its upperrear end and on its bottom.

In stacking loaded crates of this invention, any tendency for the cleatsto deflect under load will be resisted by the tensile strength of thecorrugated paper, since the framework will tend to bow outwardly andthereby place the surrounding tube in tension. The plywood panel and thetop assembly prevent puncturing of the top assembly by the verticalcleats.

In the event that it is desired to use narrow slats in the top assembly,the alternative top arrangement 13a of Figure 9 can be provided. In themodification 13a, parts identical with parts shown in Figure 7 have beenmarked with the same reference numerals.

As shown in Figure 9, the front and rear slats 70 and 71 are identicaland are shorter than the side slats 72 and 73. These side slats overlapthe ends Aof the front and rear slats and are notched at their front endto provide narrow notches 74 and are notched at their rear end toprovide wide notches 75 to serve the same purposes as thernotches 44aand 42a of Figure 7. This arrangement utilizes narrower lumber andavoids the necessity for the wide piece 42 of Figure 7.

From the above description, it will be evident that this invention nowprovides a simplified, inexpensive, lightweight shipping carton or cratehaving a rigid wooden framework composed of interlocking cleats andslats and a corrugated paper board envelope sealing the packaged goodsagainst moisture and dirt. The crate of this invention rigidly cradlesthe packaged goods in spaced relation from any of its walls so that thegoods cannot be damaged by a rubbing action.

It will be understood that modifications and variations of the presentinvention may be effected within the scope of the appended claimswithout departing from the scope of the novel concept of this invention.

We claim as our invention:

A shipping package formed from corrugated paper board and wooden membersand comprising a rigid bottom cabinet-mounting platform having parallelfront and rear wooden skids and parallel side wooden slats overlyingsaid skids and secured thereto, a corrugated paper board cover betweenthe skids and slats and having foldable iiaps projecting therefrom, saidslats having notches in the corners thereof, a cabinet secured to saidslats, an upstanding corrugated board tubular body member surroundingsaid cabinet and having score lines providing a rst side wall, a frontwall, a second side wall, and a rear wall together with an overlyingliap securing the rear wall to the first side wall, vertical cleatssecured to the inner face of said body member near the corner formingportions thereof having bottom ends received in the notches of the slatsto lbe abutted on two sides by the slats, a cover assembly having a topcorrugated paper board cover, an underlying wood veneer panel and slatson the inner face of the panel adjacent the periphery thereof formingnotches, -said notches receiving the top ends of the vertical cleats,said cover having reversely foldable flaps extending therefrom, the topand bottom ends of the body member having reversely foldable apsextending therefrom, said body aps interlocking the 'aps of the platformand the `cover assembly to form sealed seams, straps embracing theinterlocked flaps for locking same in closed position, a horizontalcrate bar engaging vthe back of said cabinet adjacent the top thereofand having its ends extending beyond the sides thereof and in contactwith the inner surface of said side walls, spacer bars disposeddiagonally across the upper corners of the package between the cabinetand crate bar holding the body member in spaced relation to the cabinet,a pair of opposed notches in the vertical cleats receiving andsupporting the ends of said crate bar, said spacer bars engaging thenotched vertical cleats and the vertical face of one of said slats onthe inner face of said panel,

andenes 'i8 and means connecting the crate bar, spacer bars, and cabinetto thereby connect the cabinet to the tubularv b'ody member adjacent thetop thereof.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,254,515 Leiman Jan. 22, 1918 1,845,086 Hillyer Feb. 16, 1932 1,990,788Kells Feb. 12, 1935 2,177,933 Boeye Oct. 31, 1939 2,332,016 SchwellerOct. 19, 1943 2,420,425 Hardwick May 13, 1947 2,488,692 "Talbot Nov. 22,1949 2,665,002 Baumann et al. Jan. 5, 1954 2,700,457 Munroe Jan. 25,1955 2,730,287 Mueller Jan. 10, 1956

